People

By Guy D. Garcia

He has been known to play a little hardball with Congress, but this pitch had nothing to do with Nicaragua or the budget deficit. Instead, Ronald Reagan was at Baltimore's Memorial Stadium last week to deliver the ceremonial toss that marks opening day of the baseball season. The First Fan's first throw, aimed at Orioles Catcher Rick Dempsey, went wild. Then, as the crowd roared, "Ronnie, Ronnie, Ronnie!" the Gipper wound up and delivered a mitt- smacking strike that Dempsey described as a "good, hard fastball, sailing high." The President hung around the O's dugout for the first two innings, at one point devouring a mustard-smeared hot dog. The former radio sportscaster gripped an imaginary bat as he told stories about filming The Winning Team, in which he portrayed Pitching Great Grover Cleveland Alexander. Unfortunately for the O's, life has not yet imitated art. The team has lost all three games at which Reagan has pitched.